Hi I need advise from anyone with a tween girl or had a tween girl and has been through this period of time. My daughter has been experiencing abdominal pain probably for the last month, I dont know if it is cramping from just going to start her period (it hasnt happened yet, but I've heard they could be phantom pains) or if she is having the pains because of her constipation issues that have also just started. I want to help her so bad but I've tried everything, increasing her fiber intake and giving her a stool softener every day. She does have an intolerance to cheese, which I know is a major contributer to this problem and she loves pizza! and cheese sandwiches, and milk, etc... So I have majorly limited her milk product intake to absolutely no milk ( I now buy vanilla almond milk, which she loves :)) and with the extra fiber supplements and I make sure she eats an apple (which she is not a fan of :/) everyday, and nothing is working, when she tells me her stomach is hurting her she tries to go "poo" and nothing comes out, maybe a small pelat or two and this is pretty much normal for her everyday for the last 3 weeks. She doesnt want to go to the Doctor just yet because she is embarased. I told her that we would have to go soon and that it is ok and her Doctor will listen and wont judge her. I told her that we would try a little while longer on this routine but I cant wait much longer because school is startng soon and I know her and I both dont want to be dealing with this while she is in school. Please let me know if anyone has gone through this or is going through something simular, it is just too coincidental that she is having constipation issues that are right at the time puberty would begin? :/
Hi All!! Just to let everyone know that Doc feels it is the start of her "period" because now for the last week she isnt constipated anymore but have VERY loose stools and still continues to have abdominal pain/discomfort. He told me to watch her for a week and if the stools dont form then to bring in a sample. I am pretty possitive she is having Phantom cramping and it will be ANY day now :/... Thanks everyone for all your comments... I really love this site and will revisit everytime I have a concern :) Thanks again !!
Is she getting enough water? Without water fiber supplements become cement in the colon. It sounds to be like she needs to be drinking a LOT of water. No more fiber supplements, they are not helping her. And actually apples are not that good for constipation. Apples have pectin as in Kaopectate with pectin being the active ingredient. Pectin helps to stop diarrhea. A better choice would be fresh plums or dried prunes.
Sounds like a long PMS.
I used to be like this. Cramping, upset tummy constipation, water retention.For 2 weeks before my period, then I would start and have diarrhea. So frustrating.
You will have to pay attention to what exactly her intake is. Since it is summer, lots of fresh raw fruits and vegetables. Have her stay away from binders like rice, bananas white bread(hot dog and hamburger buns) pasta.
If she eats bread, find one with bran or whole wheat.
Have her increase her fluids, soda and caffeinated or diet drinks are a no,no. These will only add to the water gain and the constipation.
Make sure she is out side riding her bike or running. She needs her body to move to get all of that loose.
If it has been ore than 2 weeks , you may want her to see a doctor to make sure there is nothing else going on. Check her temperature and make sure she is not running a low grade fever, could be appendicitis.
I would give her some miralax everyday, maybe even a coupld of times a day to get her cleaned out and then see what happens. Its hard to figure out what caused the problem since its been going on for so long. But, really, you should at least call her doctor and see if the nurse has any ideas. I do this all the time and they are really helpful on the phone.
It sounds like if she has pellet size poop, she is dehydrated. I would have her drink a glass of water every chance she gets to flush out her system. Then, give her a little prune juice/pear juice. As for the cramping, it could be her body trying to process the waste -----GL
While it does sound like constipation (push hydration and plenty of veggies, fruits, whole grains, etc. AND exercise before using laxatives!), don't let it go on for too long without getting it resolved or looked at. Constipation and abdominal pain may be the sign of something much more serious.
My 4 year old daughter was recently diagnosed with Crohn's disease, and I couldn't get the doctors at any of the local hospitals (we are currently in Malaysia) to take her complaints of severe stomach pain (waking up in the middle of the night from it, having to interrupt play dates because of it, not being able to eat without doubling over with the shakes from it) seriously. By the time we finally found someone to actually address the issue (after she was accused by her pediatrician of "faking it"), the gastroenterologist found what he described as the largest ulcer he had ever seen in a 4yo in her large intestine.
Could be. Hormones do weird thing sometimes. I would continue to gently try to help her, but tell her that she needs to see the doctor to feel better if it doesn't resolve. Is she also hydrated? It's summer, she's taking a lot of fiber, but how much water is she drinking? I would lay off the stool softener and get her to drink more and eat fruit (not just apples, but cherries, raspberries, pears, etc. When my DD was a baby, anytime we worried about her bowels we gave her blueberries. Did the trick every time.)
I agree with ReverendRuby who said she needs to be drinking a lot of water. You say what she's eating, but you do not mention what she's drinking. I have three daughters. 9, 13 and 13. They drink at least 8-10 glasses of water a day. In addition, they get a lot of fiber. None of them have issues with constipation. My son, 14, drinks about the same, but has decided he doesn't like to eat, well, pretty much anything. He doesn't get enough fiber (and hasn't for some time now). We've started sneaking things into the foods he will eat. He's a bit more regular now.
Try to increase the amount of water she's drinking and see if that helps.
If she doesn't start going regularly soon, you need to get her to the doctor. It's possible for a person to become impacted with feces. That's not good. So please, get her seen and taken care of!
Besides the fiber she's taking, prune juice should help along with lots of water.
Probiotics might help too - they work like a laxative for me.
Constipation can be a part of Irritable Bowel Syndrome.
With abdominal pain - it could be menstrual cramps or constipation problems, but there is also chronic appendicitis.
Acute appendicitis is where things happen suddenly, but chronic can come and go over and over again.
There's also diverticulitis, and hernia, too.
Since there is a problem with dairy, avoid the cheese for awhile and see if it gets better.
If it goes on for another month - it's time to see the dr and get it figured out.
